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PHOENIX — Arizona lawmakers want to make sure state officials do not take your guns the next time a hurricane strikes Arizona.

Or an earthquake, flood, invasion or pandemic.

The Senate Government Committee approved legislation Thursday that would specifically make it illegal for the governor or any official to confiscate legally kept firearms during a state of emergency. The 5-2 vote sends the bill to the full Senate.

Sen. Dean Martin, R-Phoenix, said that in the aftermath of hurricane Katrina, New Orleans police began taking guns from residents, included not only criminals but other people who were simply defending themselves or their homes.

Existing Arizona law gives the governor broad powers during a declared emergency, including "all police power vested in the state by the constitution and laws of this state."

Gary Christensen, a member of the Arizona State Rifle and Pistol Association, said the experience of Katrina proves that some statutory limits are necessary here: "People are left on their own in the initial stages of natural disaster and riots."

Sen. Bill Brotherton, D-Phoenix, said the bill, Senate Bill 1425, is built on the incorrect presumption that constitutional rights should never be suspended in emergencies. He said a curfew may be needed even if it can interfere with the First Amendment right of people to assemble.

And Brotherton said there may be legitimate reasons to control the number of guns on the street during an emergency.

Sen. Albert Hale, D-Window Rock, was more blunt, calling the bill "a license to shoot first and ask questions later."

Martin said nothing in his legislation prohibits police from exercising control through things like a curfew.